Hurricane Earl (Default)
Hurricane Earl was a highly lethal and catastrophic tropical cyclone which caused devastating amounts of damage to portions of Florida and Louisiana. It became one of the costliest tropical cyclones on record to make landfall in the United States on record. The fourth named storm, third hurricane, and first major hurricane of the 2022 Atlantic hurricane season, the precursor to Earl can be traced back to a vigorous tropical wave which traveled off the coast of West Africa on August 19th. The tropical wave was considerably small in size, but managed to persist, eventually strengthening into a tropical depression. Semi-favorable conditions allowed the depression to strengthen into Tropical Storm Earl. The small tropical storm entered semi-favorable conditions for intensification, allowing it to further strengthen into a low-end hurricane. The small cyclone entered a large mass of dry air, impacting the strength of the hurricane. Earl eventually weakened into a tropical storm again, before gradually strengthening before landfall in Hispaniola as a weak hurricane. Hispaniola's mountainous terrain caused rapid weakening to ensue, but Earl managed to exit Hispaniola and enter the warm waters near the Bahamas, and rapid intensification ensued as the system became a Category 3 major hurricane, before making landfall directly on Miami, Florida and a large portion of southern Florida as well. As the cyclone exited Florida, room for strengthening allowed the cyclone to rapidly re-intensify as the system defied all model expectations, becoming a Category 4 major hurricane with wind speeds of 145 miles per hour (230 km/h) and a minimum barometric pressure of 942 mbar (27.82 inHg). Earl underwent an eyewall replacement cycle, weakening it slightly before it made landfall in Louisiana. Earl caused the levees of New Orleans to fall, prompting devastating amounts of flooding, leaving many buildings destroyed beyond repair. Earl continued into Louisiana as a Category 1 hurricane, causing heavy rainfall and flooding to ensue among many portions of Louisiana. The system moved northeast, causing heavy rainfall among multiple inland states before gradually merging with a frontal system on September 9th. Meteorological history On August 19th, a vigorous wave which had been causing persisting showers over the Guinea region emerged off of the coast of Africa. The wave began tracking westward, and a circulation began to slowly take shape. ASCAT data and satellite imagery began showing evidence of a closed circulation. Soon after, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) initiated its first advisory on Tropical Depression Five. As the depression tracked westward, it entered entered favorable conditions for development, and Five strengthened into Tropical Storm Earl. Earl carried on with intensification in semi-favorable conditions as it approached the Leeward Islands. The system managed to briefly strengthen into a Category 1 hurricane before encountering a large mass of dry air. The dry air managed to breach the system and disrupted intensification. Continued unfavorable conditions limited the development of Earl as it moved northwest. Despite this, Earl managed to strengthen into a Category 1 hurricane during landfall on Hispaniola before weakening to a tropical depression as it moved inland. Earl, reaching the highly favorable conditions near the Bahamas, managed to rapidly restrengthen into a Category 1 hurricane, before rapidly intensifying into a Category 3 while approaching Miami. As Earl exited Florida, it considerably warm sea surface temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico, where it was suitable for intensification to ensue once more. Within a day, Earl intensified from a Category 1 hurricane into a Category 4 major hurricane, reaching its peak intensity of 145 mph (230 km/h) after a reconnaissance mission reported winds near 143 mph near the center of Earl. As Earl approached Louisiana, minor amounts of wind shear, alongside an eyewall replacement cycle, caused the system to weaken slightly, before making landfall in New Orleans, Louisiana, as a brutal Category 4 hurricane. After landfall in Louisiana, the remnants of Earl caused record amounts of rainfall in northern Louisiana and portions of Tennessee, before eventually becoming a remnant low on September 9th, and merging with a frontal system the same day. Preparations Caribbean On early August 27th, a hurricane warning was issued for Martinique. That same day, tropical storm watches and warnings were issued for portions of the Windward Islands as Earl neared. As Earl approached Hispaniola, hurricane watches and tropical storm warnings were issued for portions of the southern Dominican Republic from Barahona to Santo Domingo. Several shelters were set up further inland and residents were advised to seek shelter or stay indoors during the duration of the storm. Additionally, the Prime Minister of Haiti advised all citizens to seek shelter as the storm passed. As it became clear that Earl would become a hurricane, mandatory evacuations were set up for smaller coastal cities in the Dominican Republic. Additional watches extended to large portions of the southern coastline of Hispaniola. Due to the small size of Earl, most other regions in the Caribbean did not prepare much for the system. Bahamas As Earl rapidly intensified over the Bahamas, hurricane warnings were placed into effect for Andros Island. Hurricane watches were also issued for Grand Bahama and the Abaco Islands. A mandatory evacuation was set in place, and for those who remained, warnings to find immediate shelter were put in place by the NHC and the Prime Minister of the Bahamas. A statement was made by the NHC regarding Earl, stating "those who do not follow these instructions may cost them their own life". Thousands of citizens flocked to local stores to buy non-perishable food and water, among other supplies. In Grand Bahama, multiple precautions were taken due to the storms increasing size. Citizens were advised to take shelter and prepare for tropical storm or possible hurricane-force winds. People were also advised to go farther inland in order to avoid rip currents. Mainland United States Florida During the rapid intensification of Earl over the Bahamas, the Governor of Florida declared a state of emergency in a large portion of coastal and central inland Florida, later expanding to the entire state. Hurricane warnings were put in place for everything south of Brevard County as it became apparent the system would increase in size. Residents rushed stores to stock up on as much as they could. Often times, water and different forms of non-perishable food were ripped off shelves. Thousands of National Guard troops were deployed to support relief efforts. Over the span of less than 2 days, mandatory evacuations were ordered for multiple counties in the projected path of Earl. Due to this, large traffic jams often occurred, leading to a very slow evacuation, causing the death toll in Florida to increase immensely. People in Florida were advised to seek immediate shelter in a sturdy structure. People rushed to shelters which were set up in Florida, some shelters often getting highly over-crowded. Hundreds of general shelters were opened across the state, alongside shelters for people with specific disabilities. Numerous internet and phone providers allowed unlimited access to WiFi during the storm, alongside unlimited calling, data, and texting. Uber and Lyft provided very cheap discounts to customers in the path of Earl, and most fees for these services were waived. Multiple major organizations provided aid to Florida to help relief efforts, with multiple household brands sending food items to the counties impacted. Louisiana After Earl entered the Gulf of Mexico and began moving torwards Louisiana, the governor of Louisiana declared a state of emergency for the whole state, issuing hurricane warnings for most of coastal Louisiana. Mandatory evacuations were issued in large portions of southeast Louisiana as the storm continued. As the storm intensified, people who had not yet evacuated Louisiana were given stern warnings to find immediate shelter in a safe building during the duration of the cyclone by the governer of Louisiana and the National Hurricane Center. During a very small period of time, hundreds of shelters opened in all of Louisiana among other regions of the southeastern United States which would get more minor effects from Earl. During the period of time in which Earl began to move torwards Louisiana, multiple national retail stores declared that sales of food products, water, flashlights, and battery-powered radios hit an all time high. During preparations, FEMA requested that several national water bottling and distribution companies send potable water to areas in the path of Earl. Overall, more than 4 million bottles of potable drinking water were shipped to Louisiana to provide aid to residents. Similarly to the situation in Florida, multiple cell/internet providers waived fees and gave unlimited access to those in the storm, and Uber and Lyft once more provided cheap rides to and from shelters. In Northern Louisiana, people were told to stay indoors and take proper precautions for gusty winds and large amounts of flash flooding as the storm passed. Mississippi As Earl strengthened, hurricane watches were put in effect from the mouth of the Pearl River to Gulfport, while hurricane watches were put in place for the rest of coastal Mississippi. As it became clear that the storm would only bring hurricane-strength winds to small portions of Mississippi, these watches/warnings were changed to tropical storm watches and warnings. Soon after, the watches for eastern coastal Mississippi were removed. All warnings were removed as the storm moved farther inland. Some portions of northwestern Mississippi stayed on alert for flash flooding as the remnants of Earl passed. Elsewhere In Tennessee, residents were advised to stay alert during the duration of Earl due to the possibility of flash flooding and heavy rain. Similarly, in Kentucky, citizens were told to stay alert in areas that could possibly be impacted by rainfall. Impact Caribbean Martinique Martinique experienced severe rainfall and gusty winds as the cyclone passed the island. Hispaniola Upon landfall, Earl provoked heavy amounts of inland flooding for various coastal cities in both Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Dozens of people were out to sea due to severe flash flooding. Hurricane-force winds and rainfall also impacted agriculture, destroying crops. Bahamas In the Bahamas, Andros Island experienced major flash flooding and hurricane force winds as the storm passed. Power lines and trees were downed due to the flooding and winds. Dozens of residents were swept away during the flash flooding that ensued during the duration of the cyclone. In total, 6 people were declared missing while 3 fatalities were confirmed. Mainland United States Florida Damage estimates concluded that Earl caused around $42.8 billion dollars in damage in the state of Florida alone, mainly due to the major amounts of storm surge which the state recieved. During evacuation, dozens attempted to rush out of major cities, the biggest being Miami, in order to stay clear of the cyclone. These attempts ended up being counterintuitive, as major traffic jams ensued. This caused people to leave their cars in hopes of finding some form of shelter, ultimately leading to hundreds dying while attempting to escape the storm. Major hurricane-force winds caused power lines to be downed and trees to be uprooted. Alongside this, catastrophic effects were felt in major mobile home communities in Florida. Thousands of mobile home communities were completely or nearly entirely destroyed in Earl, leaving thousands homeless. Overall, estimates conclude that around 83% of mobile home communities in the areas impacted by Earl were completely destroyed or left in unrepairable condition. In addition to the catastrophic winds and storm surge caused by the storm, several tornadoes were spawned by Earl, furthering impacts in the area. Several tornadoes, all ranging from intensities of EF0 to EF3, were reported to have formed during Earl. The most damaging of these, an EF3 tornado, ripped through several small communities in the area, causing more residences to be completely destroyed during Earl. Category:Costly storms Category:Category 4 hurricanes